choices for ranged in PVE

What I am looking for: PVE, open world exploration and eventually dungeons/fractals. I prefer ranged, as all those red circles make it impossible to hit anything. I also want something with some good AOE options.

I first leveled a necro, and that was a lot of fun, but it seemed almost too easy--hit all the keys on all 3 bars back to forwards and the thing is dead. But it kinda bores me. The best builds that I have seen tend to be minion based, and I really don't like pet classes.

Then I played thief to 20 or so, and really liked it, so boosted one. Big mistake. I have no idea how to play her, and taking her through HoT was too much. I want to learn to play her but might end up abandoning her. Part of it is the weapons--I love dagger but again how do I hit kitten with 10 red circles? And yes, I've played with all the combinations. I'd like to stick to her, if I could figure out all the myriad of combinations of specs, utilities, weapons... p/d seems best so far. I don't like p/p. I forget the other combos. I prefer d/d really, but again, not useful.

I started an engineer, and she is above 30 now, but all these turrets and such are kinda annoying. Maybe when I play her more I will figure it. It's not all that complicated, just turrets whirring and such. I do like the rifle.

Other suggestions:
Warrior bores me. I don't generally like heavy armor classes.
Ele seems a lot of fun so far. I am thinking of concentrating on her next. Part of it is the staff (I think) is 1200 range, which is very sweet. I like choosing the element and having lots of AOE.
Mesmer I haven't really given a chance yet.

Also, the weapon skills with the AOE marks, I find difficult to use. I know there is the option in the menu, but it just seems slow, and I want to BANG BANG not, tab, press button, press button again. Maybe I'm not doing it right, but it's really annoying. What is the best way to use those marks?

What should I work on? What specs/utilities/weapons should I use?

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Comments

@BastCreature.9821 said:
Also, the weapon skills with the AOE marks, I find difficult to use. I know there is the option in the menu, but it just seems slow, and I want to BANG BANG not, tab, press button, press button again. Maybe I'm not doing it right, but it's really annoying. What is the best way to use those marks?

(Emphasis added)

Have you tried out different combinations? Because there are several options regarding where the targeting defaults to and how the skill is activated. You can for instance have the targeting show on pressing down the key and fire off on releasing the key. You can have the targeting default to where your current target is, no mattet where your cursor is; or to max distance. You can limit so your targeting never go outside your max range, etc.

As you want to play RangeD class, why not try... RangeR. Yes there is a pet to slow down enemies who would run straight toward you, but you do not have to control it in anyway since your pet moves and attacks your target itself. Longbow on ranger has highest range of any weapon and Rapid Fire is exactly the bang-bang skill you talk about.

@BastCreature.9821 said:
Also, the weapon skills with the AOE marks, I find difficult to use. I know there is the option in the menu, but it just seems slow, and I want to BANG BANG not, tab, press button, press button again. Maybe I'm not doing it right, but it's really annoying. What is the best way to use those marks?

(Emphasis added)

Have you tried out different combinations? Because there are several options regarding where the targeting defaults to and how the skill is activated. You can for instance have the targeting show on pressing down the key and fire off on releasing the key. You can have the targeting default to where your current target is, no mattet where your cursor is; or to max distance. You can limit so your targeting never go outside your max range, etc.

Oh, I didn't know about additional options. Will check those out, thanks!

@FogLeg.9354 said:
As you want to play RangeD class, why not try... RangeR. Yes there is a pet to slow down enemies who would run straight toward you, but you do not have to control it in anyway since your pet moves and attacks your target itself. Longbow on ranger has highest range of any weapon and Rapid Fire is exactly the bang-bang skill you talk about.

@FogLeg.9354 said:
As you want to play RangeD class, why not try... RangeR. Yes there is a pet to slow down enemies who would run straight toward you, but you do not have to control it in anyway since your pet moves and attacks your target itself. Longbow on ranger has highest range of any weapon and Rapid Fire is exactly the bang-bang skill you talk about.

I will check it out... when I get more character slots, lol.

The only problem with Ranger is the Longbow AoE is a bit of a joke. Barrage has a moderate cooldown, but its damage is pretty sad, and while it does cripple, the best use for it is to 'tag' mobs in a group. As you get to higher levels, you can talent so your Longbow arrows will pierce, which is nice, but doesn't compare to the cleaves or AoE of other professions. Best AoE I can think of for a Ranger would be using Traps, but those are on cooldown and.......are not ranged =(

There are many fights that involve those 'red circles', and where it's often better for a melee spec to use a ranged secondary weapon, but generally speaking, things aren't necessarily easier for ranged than they are for melee.

You mentioned Thief. I leveled one just to unlock Daredevil - Staff, but I leveled her as Dagger/Dagger. How did I deal with those red circles? Dodge, but also many of the thief attacks incorporate an evade into the attack animation. For example on a Dagger/Dagger, Skill 3 is Death Blossom (awesome reference to The Last Starfighter) where you literally jump up, twirl in the air, and swipe at all targets in range. I used to purposefully jump into groups of 4-5 mobs just so I could use that skill, dodge out, then use it again. So fun!

Dodging is a very important part of GW2, and it applies equally to ranged as well as melee., so best to practice it rather than attempt to circumvent the need for it.

Also worth noting, in group play like Dungeons and Fractals, to get optimal performance you need to be in range of everyone else's boons, which means unlike games like WoW where the casters and healers stand way in the back, you still need to be near the group to get buffs and healing, and by extension, give them your buffs and your healing.

What didn't you like about dual pistol thief? Skill 3 is probably the ultimate pow-pow in the game. If you slot some AOE sigils, that will add some AOE you're looking for (fire, torment, poison...). You can slot a short bow in the alt slot for more ranged options plus the shadow step movement. You could enhance with poison skills in the utilities, traps, or whatever. I use two traps (one to stop enemies and one to summon a thief which also distracts), and the thieves guild elite. One of my favorite core builds. Even if you did the max 80 boost, you can go back to earlier areas to help learn the profession. You still get rewarded according to your level.

I mostly play a guardian-dragon hunter with longbow. Similar to ranger as far as the weapon skills, and I slot traps in all slots. I love laying traps then luring the enemies onto them, or running up and laying them at their feet.

@BastCreature.9821 said:
What I am looking for: PVE, open world exploration and eventually dungeons/fractals. I prefer ranged, as all those red circles make it impossible to hit anything. I also want something with some good AOE options.

I first leveled a necro, and that was a lot of fun, but it seemed almost too easy--hit all the keys on all 3 bars back to forwards and the thing is dead. But it kinda bores me. The best builds that I have seen tend to be minion based, and I really don't like pet classes.

Then I played thief to 20 or so, and really liked it, so boosted one. Big mistake. I have no idea how to play her, and taking her through HoT was too much. I want to learn to play her but might end up abandoning her. Part of it is the weapons--I love dagger but again how do I hit kitten with 10 red circles? And yes, I've played with all the combinations. I'd like to stick to her, if I could figure out all the myriad of combinations of specs, utilities, weapons... p/d seems best so far. I don't like p/p. I forget the other combos. I prefer d/d really, but again, not useful.

I started an engineer, and she is above 30 now, but all these turrets and such are kinda annoying. Maybe when I play her more I will figure it. It's not all that complicated, just turrets whirring and such. I do like the rifle.

Other suggestions:
Warrior bores me. I don't generally like heavy armor classes.
Ele seems a lot of fun so far. I am thinking of concentrating on her next. Part of it is the staff (I think) is 1200 range, which is very sweet. I like choosing the element and having lots of AOE.
Mesmer I haven't really given a chance yet.

Also, the weapon skills with the AOE marks, I find difficult to use. I know there is the option in the menu, but it just seems slow, and I want to BANG BANG not, tab, press button, press button again. Maybe I'm not doing it right, but it's really annoying. What is the best way to use those marks?

What should I work on? What specs/utilities/weapons should I use?

In open world play you can pretty much do whatever feels right to you. However, you should know that group content strongly favors melee weapons for most classes and even ranged users will typically stand at or near melee range to benefit from healing/support.

Having said that, for solo open world play it is usually easiest to use both a ranged and melee weapon set. Since you won't always have support available, locking yourself into pure melee tends to be a bit of a handicap.

I can't tell you what will click with you, but I can tell you what I enjoy. I play Mirage (PoF Mesmer elite spec) using axe/torch and staff. This gives me a melee set and a long range set. I can also recommend a new player-friendly build that is relatively easy and forgiving to play as well as inexpensive to gear, but quite powerful in general open world content. Here is a link to the build and a sample video of it in action: